Getting to know our ingredients!

If you haven’t heard by now, we only use essential oils in our beard oils and hair care products. Synthetic fillers like silicone and petroleum based oils have no place in our range.

Nature is full of goodness. We bottle that goodness. Nothing more, nothing less. So we thought it’s time to shed some light on the elements of nature that we squeeze, mix and blend to create our range of men’s grooming products.

WATERMELON SEED OIL

Watermelon seed oil is a product of, believe it or not, watermelon seeds. Slightly nutty in aroma, the golden liquid is extracted after the seeds are dried using the cold-pressing method.

Traditionally (and still) used in a loft of West African countries in its raw form, Watermelon seed makes a fantastic moisturiser and excels in combatting that dry scalp. Light in structure, it is absorbed into the body very quickly and is great at reducing excess sebum (the natural oil your body makes). For this reason, we gave it a home in our conditioners.

Watermelon seed oil has antioxidant levels through the roof and a shelf life better than Keith Richards.

SHEA BUTTER

Shea butter is a paste that comes from the fruit of the karite tree. Grown around the equator and super-rich in unsaturated fat, it is used as a food, a sunblock and also as a moisturiser in our conditioner.

A recent study in the Journal of Oleo Science concluded that shea nuts and fat (butter) contain a lot of anti-inflammatory compounds. So you know that itchy scalp and beard you’ve got? Introduce it to our shampoo and conditioner. Being rich in vitamins A and E, it soothes dryness, repairs breakage and mends split ends.
If you can get your hands on shea butter in this form, it also makes an incredible face mask and it tastes good, too!

BAMBOO STEM EXTRACT

Bamboo isn’t just Panda food. Bamboo stem extract is a substance derived from the bamboo tree. This substance is high in silica, a mineral that is naturally made in the body and responsible for making good quality hair and skin.

Silica also rejuvenates the skin by removing damaged skin cells and other compounds that could potentially hinder the quality and health of the skin.

In fact, supplementing silica from bamboo stem extract has been known to alleviate eczema and psoriasis. It’s a main ingredient in our scrub for this exact reason.

ACTIVATED CHARCOAL

This is a little different to the black stuff you find in the fire-pit after a house party. The ‘activated’ party simply means it has been processed to have a large surface area on a microscopic level- therefore it can literally absorb more built-up oil from your skin.

Being rough on a granular level, it is an excellent exfoliant and has no trouble removing dead skin. That’s why we put a lot of it in our body scrub alongside bamboo stem extract.

Charcoal is quickly finding its place in the cosmetic industry. We love it for many reasons, especially that colour.

POMEGRANATE ENZYME

Pomegranate is that weird fruit that you can never really remember if you like it or not. Enzymes from natural sources, such as fruits, working with the enzymes in and on your skin, can come together in a dramatic dance to revitalise your skin.

This is a pomegranate, not something from the ocean depths.
Pomegranates are rich in salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is able to penetrate into the skin of your scalp which contains sebum (oil) and exfoliates the dead skin cells that are built up. Good skin = good hair.

In its spare time, Pomegranate Enzyme likes to soothe dry, cracked and irritated skin as it contains punicic acid, an omega-5 fatty acid that hydrates skin. So it makes sense that it’s also in our conditioner!

EUCALYPTUS OIL

Any Australia reading this knows that there’s always a bottle of eucalyptus nearby. Great for taking off sticker residue or permanent marker from places it shouldn’t be, it also has some great health benefits.

Eucalyptus can be quite strong, fragrantly. An excess of oil and dead skin can simply leave your beard slightly stinky. This is where our Down Under beard oil can help!

Eucalyptus is a great natural remedy for lice. No lice in your beard or hair? Worry not! It is also a fantastic moisturiser. It helps lock good moisture into the hair and scalp and keep it there.

TEA TREE OIL

It’s that smell that you know, but you don’t know where you know it from. Tea tree oil has a world of uses.

Tea tree, or melaleuca for those in the biz, has been proven to soothe dry flaky skin and remove dandruff. It is also fantastic for treating inflammation, like dandruff or eczema itch. Its versatility is why it’s present in nearly all our products.

We put it in our beard oils so it can calm your itchy and flaking skin under your beard – aka beardruff. It also does a fantastic job at repairing skin and leaving it looking healthy and soft. Bonus points!

ARGAN OIL

Goats climb trees to eat the fruit that Argan oil comes from. If that’s a good enough reason for you to use it rather than a crappy synthetic product, I don’t know what is.

Wild goats climb the Argania tree to eat the fruit.

Inside the fruit is a nut that is pressed to get Argan oil. For generations, Moroccans have used this oil as a dietary supplement, rash relief and to nourish skin and hair.

Research shows argan oil does 2 things really well – ease inflammation and nourish the skin. It ticks all the right boxes so we use it as a carrier oil in our beard range.

We’ve built our brand on transparency, we don’t try cover poor ingredient choices by using a catch phrase of no sulphates but then use PEG’s, parabens or other cheap ingredient choices. We’re consistent through and through – free from PEG’s, parabens, phthalates, sulphates, silicones, DEA, TEA, glycols, synthetic fragrance, microbeads and mineral oils. We pride ourself in educating our customers and showing them why our products are good, rather that just saying they are. This blog is a step towards what we also love doing- educating.

We hope you liked meeting our favourite ingredients as much as they like helping your hair (face or head) and skin look as good as it can be!